3 autumn dishes paired with Pazo Baión wines

The weather conditions and the excellent seasonal products invite us to get into the kitchen and prepare autumn dishes that pair perfectly with the Albariños from our winery

With the arrival of November, our body begins to ask for hot meals. Stews take over the kitchens, but the embers also have their place in the autumn gastronomy and our hearts. The cool and rainy weather associated with November whets our appetite. Besides, what better way to spend a pleasant evening with our friends and family than sitting around delicious autumn dishes, paired with the only single-estate albariños on the market?

That is precisely the plan we propose today. Three extraordinarily simple recipes that take advantage of some of the tastiest seasonal products and transform them into an excellent menu for any meal to surprise our loved ones.

Three autumn dishes that also pair perfectly with Rías Baixas Pazo Baión, Vides de Fontán, and Gran a Gran. The most important thing in these recipes is, without a doubt, to get the best raw materials, from seafood to Pazo Baión wines, and to know how to control the time and intensity of the heat or the fire that will be used to cook the dishes.

Baked quail with Vides de Fontán

The custom dictates that meat is usually served after fish or seafood. But when it comes to preparing this menu of autumn dishes, we have decided to twist this idea: why not start with a light and delicious meat dish that serves as a backdrop to a spectacular traditional stew?

That is why the first of our autumn dishes are made up of a single, excellent product: oven-cooked quail. These small birds populate the Galician forests, transforming into oceans of colors because of the autumn. Their delicious meat has been part of our gastronomy for centuries. Their flavor is so special and characteristic that they do not need many frills to make a sensational dish.

Ingredients
1 quail per person
1 clove of garlic per person
1 sprig of thyme per person
Oil
White wine
Salt, pepper, and oregano to taste

Elaboration

The execution of this recipe is extraordinarily simple. After buying the quails (we recommend one per person), we must proceed to clean them. If we want to save work, it is best to ask our trusted butcher to do the dirty work.

Once they are clean, season them with salt and pepper and put them inside a clove of garlic, a sprig of thyme, and a little oregano. Preheat the oven to its maximum temperature, place the quails on a tray, drizzle olive oil over them and put the tray in the oven. Let them cook for 10 minutes, then add a good splash of white wine and let them cook for another 10 minutes.

Pairing

Finally, take them out of the oven and serve them, accompanied by a glass (or two) of our albariño Vides de Fontán, a wine that stands out within the Rías Baixas D.O. for its complex aging process, which takes up to three years. This maturation process results in a critically acclaimed structure and spicy and toasted notes that make it the best companion for meats such as quail.

Cuttlefish stew with Pazo Baión

As we announced before, the second of our autumn dishes has cuttlefish as the absolute protagonist. This mollusk impregnates the best stews with its delicious flavor, and what better time to prepare and enjoy a stew than autumn? When thinking about autumn dishes that warm our bodies and soul, it is inevitable to bask in the mental image of a steaming homemade stew. Well, why don’t we move from the realm of imagination to reality?

Ingredients
1 kg of cuttlefish
500 grams of potatoes
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 ripe tomato
Oil
White wine
Parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Elaboration

First, we have to cut the cuttlefish into medium size squares. Then, chop the onion and garlic cloves finely. We sauté them in a pan with olive oil until the onion acquires color and is perfectly poached. That will be the moment to add the star of the show: the cuttlefish. After adding it to the pan we sauté it for about five minutes with the onion and garlic, stirring carefully from time to time, to make sure it is sautéed evenly and does not burn.

And, from this point on, the chup chup begins. Add a glass of white wine, the finely chopped tomato, and the potatoes cut into large pieces to prevent them from being diluted in the stew, and add a little water until the cuttlefish is covered with liquid. Let everything simmer for 20 minutes. After this time add the chopped potatoes and let the stew cook for another 30 minutes. When this time is about to expire you can add the finely chopped parsley.

When finished, serve the cuttlefish in a serving dish or even in the steaming casserole itself. The smells will invade the whole space and will make your guests’ mouths water even before tasting the cuttlefish.

Pairing

What can we pair with one of the most iconic autumn dishes? In two words: Pazo Baión. The Best Young White Wine of Spain according to the Gourmet Wine Guide 2022 is the perfect choice for a stew that mixes a product of the sea as wonderful as cuttlefish with a land product as important in our gastronomy as the potato. Its intense varietal perfume dazzles our senses showing us the superb aromas of the Albariño and its freshness and long development in the mouth make it the perfect partner for seafood.

Roasted chestnuts with Gran a Gran

One of the most important popular festivals in Galicia is, without a doubt, the Magosto. Throughout the entire community, thousands of magostos take place during the first fortnight of November. Countless people gather to share laughter, conversation, wine, and chestnuts. Such is its social relevance and historical tradition that for Galicians it is difficult to think of this season and not end up wanting to taste one of the autumn dishes par excellence of our gastronomy and main protagonists of the magostos: roasted chestnuts.

Ingredients
1 Kg of country chestnuts

Elaboration

What do we need to roast chestnuts? The convenient thing would be a fire, either a fireplace, a grill, a wood stove, or a gas stove. And a frying pan with holes to cook them. What happens if we don’t have any of these options at home? Are we left without tasting one of the most important and traditional autumn dishes? No, don’t panic, chestnuts can also be roasted in a conventional electric oven.

Whichever method we use, first of all, it is essential to make a deep cut in each of the chestnuts that goes through both skins and prevents them from jumping when exposed to heat, causing involuntary backfires. The mascletà does not take place in autumn.

Then, simply place the chestnuts in the pan or on a baking tray and let them roast thanks to the fire or heat. The important thing is, without a doubt, to make sure that they are cooked on all sides and to prevent them from burning. The skin of the chestnut should acquire a shade between brown and black. Without being raw, but not scorched either. What is our advice? Take a chestnut, peel it and check firsthand what is its state of cooking. If it’s already roasted, it’s time to take out its sisters, too.

What is the difference between roasting chestnuts over a fire or in the oven? The smoky touch that the first method gives to the chestnuts is part of the characteristic flavor of one of Galicia’s most famous autumn dishes.

Pairing

Once they are out, diners can taste these chestnuts one by one, accompanying them with Gran a Gran, a semi-dry wine resulting from a natural miracle: noble rot. An Albariño whose honeyed and candied notes make it the best choice for pairing with desserts such as roasted chestnuts.

If you do not conquer your loved ones with this menu composed of three autumn dishes so suggestive, simple to make, and perfectly paired with Pazo Baión albariños, you’d better take a break as a chef and resign from your hosting duties. But don’t worry, we are sure this won’t happen, we promise you that with these three autumn dishes you are playing it safe. Happy stomachs to sweeten November.